[ RadSafe ] Researcher finds revolutionary way to treat eye cancer

[Emmanuel.Egger at babs.admin.ch]

Dear all

In principle, this sounds interesting, but in practice, there is no need for this treatment option. All patients with uveal melanoma treated with brachytherapy turning legally blind as a result of the treatment could be treated with proton beam radiotherapy. With this treatment, most of these patients would retain a usefull vision.
The problem is rather that proton therapy is only available in a very limited number of specialized centers and physicians do not like to send their patients to another doctor if they can do something like brachytherapy themselves.

Kind regards
Emmanuel Egger

-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
Von: radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu [mailto:radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu] Im Auftrag von Alston, Chris
Gesendet: Dienstag, 31. August 2010 19:17
An: radsafe at health.phys.iit.edu
Betreff: Re: [ RadSafe ] Researcher finds revolutionary way to treat eye cancer

Mike

That is what I assumed.  And it is a wonderful, probably game-changing idea (given that the trials support it).  Bear in mind that I-125 seeds are about an effective energy of 28 keV; Pd-103 seeds are about 21 keV.  So, it is hard to see that the technique would be useful for medium-E photons.  I wonder if it would not be useful for beta emitters though;  there should be minimal bremsstrahlung.

Cheers
cja

________________________________
From: "Brennan, Mike (DOH)" <Mike.Brennan at DOH.WA.GOV>
To: The International Radiation Protection (Health Physics) MailingList 
<radsafe at health.phys.iit.edu>
Sent: Mon, August 30, 2010 10:12:23 AM
Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Researcher finds revolutionary way to treat eye cancer

Interesting.  I assume it works by increasing the density of the fluid inside 
the eyeball, thus providing more absorption of the radiation before it reaches 
other structures.  

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